1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of information and business systems and, in particular, to automated systems for exchanging information via telephone equipment.
2. Background Art
In recent years various technologies have been developed to ease various aspects of communications and business activities. In general, these developments have related to the reducing of costs, and/or the at least partial automating of functions previously done manually to increase the speed and accuracy with which these functions may be accomplished. Described hereinafter are certain of these developments relating to and forming prior art relevant to the present invention.
In the commonly owned co-pending application Ser. No. 07/142,676, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, a prior art Interactive Voice Exchange Computer (IVEC) for receiving and playing messages over telephone lines is described. The IVEC system uses a digital computer and enhanced digital speech technology to record and play back natural speech and music with a clarity approaching that of the original sound. A single such system can deliver multiple messages to multiple telephone lines for multiple information providers, independently and simultaneously. It can, for example, answer up to 52 lines on the first ring, respond to one or more touch tone digits dialed by callers, then select and play a sequence of one or more common or unique messages in a pattern depending upon what was dialed. Up to eight completely independent information services can coexist on the same system, with each of the eight playing a simple message or a different complex pattern of messages with any combination of common or unique parts, such as introductions, spots, transitions, tags, and optional fill-ins. If desired, individual spoken words may even be selected automatically or by a data link to create detailed time, weather and quote services.
All of the messages on the IVEC system may be recorded on site or remotely from any touch tone telephone while the system stays on line answering calls. Different passwords protect up to eight providers from unauthorized updating. The system also keeps separate comprehensive accounting data for each provider, including a grand total, a resettable total, individual line totals, hourly totals and caller choice totals. All of the totals may be obtained on site or remotely in spoken words and numbers from any touch tone telephone. As with updating, different passwords protect each provider from unauthorized access. The system, when fully configured, consists of a personal computer, such as an IBM AT with the PC DOS operating system, appropriate software, keyboard, CRT display, power line conditioner, one or more four-line telephone interface circuit boards and one or more four-line conferencing boards installed either in the computer cabinet itself or in an expansion cabinet.
In the aforementioned co-pending application, an information network and method for providing a nationwide audio text network, including electronic billing, useful for a wide variety of applications is disclosed. The information network utilizes a telephone message delivery system coupled to phone lines, typically the "800" area code common carrier lines, to receive incoming calls and to interactively respond thereto. One or more message delivery systems may be connected to a data base computer which, among other tasks, maintains a credit card data base and communicates telephonically with the appropriate credit car service bureaus to obtain credit verification and record charges to customer accounts. Such communications with a service bureau is preferably performed concurrently with processing of an incoming call so that the message delivery system can respond to a caller in accordance with information received from the service bureau. For example, if the tendered credit card number is invalid, the call may be promptly terminated.
As disclosed in the co-pending application, the message exchange system may be used for a variety of applications ranging from simple information dissemination to automatic order entry with credit verification and/or charges. It may be configured as a fully automated system without live operator intervention or with as much operator intervention as desired or required for assisting in special circumstances. In the system previously disclosed, intervention of a live operator is required for taking information such as names or addresses not readily remotely enterable from a touch tone keyboard.
Also known in the prior art are various message recording devices which use magnetic recording media for recording voice messages spoken over a telephone line. The most common of these are so-called "answering machines" that automatically connect to an incoming telephone call, play a pre-recorded greeting message and then record a spoken message from the calling party.
One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an automated message exchange system wherein a caller may provide certain information in touch tone coded format and certain other information verbally without requiring the intervention of a live operator at the time the call is received.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a system for transcribing verbal information provided by a caller into a text or machine-readable format off-line from the message exchange system.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to automatically create verbal records of recorded voice and/or touch tone coded data in a convenient, standard audio recording medium for subsequent transaction processing off-line from the message exchange system.